By Jesse Schedeen

Is there such a thing as a tie-in project being too integral to a movie? If so, Star Trek: Countdown certainly qualifies. IDW‘s prequel comic to the 2009 Star Trek reboot did a great job of shedding light on Nero’s back-story and the origins of his feud with Spock and the Vulcan Empire. The problem was that too little of that background material made it into the actual film. Nero was a poorly defined enigma unless viewers had the experience of the comic to draw upon.

For better or worse, it doesn’t appear that IDW‘s similarly conceived Star Trek Into Darkness prequel will have the same integral relationship to its source material. Countdown to Darkness reunites some of the gang from Countdown. Roberto Orci and Mike Johnson plotted the series, Johnson scripted it, and David Messina once again illustrates it. In its first issue, Countdown Into Darkness plays out pretty much like any random episode of the old TV series. The Enterprise crew arrive at their latest intergalactic destination, a routine mission develops a complication, and a handful of crew members suddenly find themselves in a pickle. It’s all there, even down to a botched mission where our heroes are joined by one random Red Shirt.

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at IGN Movie Reviews